Representing Rurally
LOCAL LEGENDS
WRITER: TRACEY COLLIS AS TOLD TO KRISTY MCGREGOR / PHOTOGRAPHER: ABBE HOARE
Tracey Collis, 52, is the Mayor of the Tararua District. Coming from “town”, she has learnt farming and now lives and breathes rural life. Her successful campaign for Mayor in 2016, through to the present day, has been an exciting journey filled with growth, surprises and the constant rallying of the rural community to implement positive change.
“The rural sector is the backbone of the Tararua District economy. When our economy is hurting, it impacts the towns greatly,” says Tracey. "People are dealing with a huge level of uncertainty at the moment. Covid-19 is part of that, but so are the drought, policy, forestry, and the lack of digital connectivity. All of those things are added pressures.”
It was not love at first sight for Jeanie Simpson when she spotted the little three-bedroom worker’s cottage her family was to move into three years ago. “To be honest, I cried when I first saw the house; the walls were the most awful shade of salmon pink and the carpet from the sixties was pretty yuck,” she explains. Jeanie, her husband Ben, and their two children, Allie, 7, and Nicholas, 5, settled in the cottage on the outskirts of Pahiatua when Ben was offered a position as farm manager.
Jeanie and Ben found themselves in a situation familiar to many farming families where budget restrictions and business priorities limit the scope of renovation to farm dwellings. With this in mind, Jeanie took to work almost immediately in making their little house a home. “We spent $500 on paint and we were able to get new carpet which has been a big improvement,” she says. “Since taking the manager’s job we have moved into an equity partnership, but the farm comes first and the farm we are on is leased, so we can only do so much to make it home. I painted all of the kitchen cabinets which brightened things up a lot.”
The vibrancy of Jeanie’s artistic endeavours brings a rich array of textures to their home, creating a cosy space to live and grow. Their little cottage isn’t the stereotypical dream home, but it serves as an unlikely canvas for the artist. A lover of bold aesthetics and pattern, Jeanie has explored her passion for art and design througAnnabel Craw could not be better qualified for the business development role she is now ensconced in. With a background in marketing, commerce, agri-business development and strategic planning, Annabel, 37, is now working on the biggest project of her career, building the Banks Peninsula farming business she runs alongside her husband, Hamish, 44. The couple’s three children, Harriet, 10, Charlotte, 8, and George, 6, are also an integral part of the ‘Ridgecliff’ business and the story of the family farm that underpins it.
Annabel has only been able to immerse herself in this project after deciding to step back from her role with DairyNZ in June last year. “It was a really good step for me as I wanted to base myself on the Peninsula but I had to think how I was going to apply the skills I had gathered over the years back into our business,” she says. These skills include creating and delivering business and strategic planning courses for DairyNZ and working alongside farming businesses as they defined success and analysed their financial performance. Encouraging people to have the confidence to define their goals and aspirations, commit them to paper and begin to identify opportunities they hadn’t previously seen was a highlight. “It was rewarding and humbling and really fun working alongside amazing people,” she says.
Now the focus is on identifying and realising the opportunities within the Craw’s own land-based business, based upon 422 hectares of hill country just out from the tiny settlement of Little Akaloa. The sheep and beef farm rises above the Pacific and looks northwards towards the sweeping waters of Pegasus Bay. The stunning location is one that Annabel and Hamish are passionate about sharing with the world, through their produce, farm accommodation and social media.
Earlier this year, the Craws rebranded their business, changing it from Longridge to Ridgecliff. Nurturing a creative flare that has long been lying dormant, Annabel has designed the brand and the logo, while using her photography and design skills to open their farming world to others through social media. “We are now on Instagram and have a website that was my lockdown project. I had a bit of a taste of branding in my previous roles with DairyNZ and always had a dream to one day brand our farm, tell our story and add value to what we do here,” she says. “Last year we decided to offer our heritage farm house up for accommodation and to help market it, I did an online Hosting Masterclass which highlighted the importance of telling the story about your property and differentiating it on the accommodation market. We’ve now got a ‘story’ and a base for telling more of what we do on the farm. We’ve got a small following which is gradually growing and we’ve connected with some really wonderful people.”
Annabel and Hamish have always strived to have a few strings in their bow by diversifying their sheep and beef business. Their first step was to make their delightful colonial-era farm homestead available for others to enjoy. “We have been getting a bit of interest for weekends away, intimate gatherings and celebrations and the idea is to expand the market for that, as the farmhouse and garden provides a wonderful setting for groups to enjoy,” Annabel says. “We would like to be able to share what we are doing on our farm, such as our biodiversity project, and by coming and staying, guests can see first-hand what we do.”
The biodiversity project is a recent initiative to identify, protect and enhance the biodiversity on Ridgecliff. Once covered in ancient Tōtara forests and native bush, Banks Peninsula was cleared by early settlers who used the Tōtara wood for building. Remnants of this bush are dotted over farms across the Peninsula and are typically cherished and protected by landowners such as Annabel and Hamish. With the help of the Billion Trees Fund and other regional and local council funding streams, the couple is undertaking a planting project starting with an eighteen hectare coastal block of land.
“While it was identified as ecologically significant by our council, we have expanded it quite dramatically. We’ve fenced it and planted Kānuka which will act as a nursery plant for other native species,” Annabel says. “We’re also identifying where there are other opportunities to plant, mostly in the corners of paddocks, gullies or steep hills and letting Tōtara re-establish on top of the farm.” Part of the reason for this project is to pre-empt future environmental regulations, particularly on Banks Peninsula. “As a family we are all really enjoying the planting, collecting seeds on the farm and learning about our native biodiversity; we didn’t realise we would enjoy it so much until we started doing it.”
In 2017, Annabel completed the Kellogg Rural Leadership programme, with her project focusing on the sensitive issue of integrating into the family business.
For Annabel, it was a personal issue.
“My toolbox was lacking on how to navigate the role of daughter-in-law entering a family business,” she says. “I knew I was going to be financially involved because Hamish and I were buying into the business but at times it was a bit of a juggle balancing our personal goals and those of the wider family.” Annabel soon realised the need for more know-how. “While there is a huge amount of information around succession, particularly for the older generation, there is a real knowledge gap in the in-law role,” she says. “I just wanted to explore that and help other people.”
With a drive to continually further develop their skills, Annabel and Hamish are now part of a Red Meat Profit Partnership (RMPP) Action Group which involves a group of like-minded farmers from across the country, all focused on business development. They’re particularly looking at the strategies used by businesses, mostly outside of farming. “We want to get an understanding of how they position their businesses and deal with challenges and opportunities,” she says.
The RMPP group is just one of the many industry initiatives the Craws have been involved with over the years. The couple has also been part of Beef + Lamb New Zealand’s Sheep-for-Profit programme and were also Beef + Lamb New Zealand Innovation Farmers, where they trialled using legumes endemic in their pasture to lift the quantity and quality of dry matter grown. "We have always been open to these opportunities," says Annabel. "They have been really valuable."
Annabel admits she has had to make a conscious effort to slow down and make the most of what she has while still striving for the “lofty goals” she and Hamish have for their business. As well as keeping score of what she is grateful for, Annabel keeps a results list, identifying what she needs to do to reach those goals. “It helps me focus,” she says. To bring balance into a hectic life, the couple like to catch the early worm. Getting up at 5am, Annabel likes to exercise or just walk outside to watch the sunrise. “It sets me up for the day. I also love gardening and vegetable gardening which is what I can do with the kids and gives me another creative outlet,” she says. “Hamish and I make a real effort to get out and enjoy the farm as a family, go for a swim or get out the surf boards. We try to make everything we do enjoyable. Every day I’m consciously grateful for the work, home and life that I have.”I learnt farming life the hard way. Prior to marrying my husband, Mike, I’d always lived in town and worked off farm. Luckily, I’m married to a patient man. We’ve been married for thirty one years and have four daughters. It takes a long time to work your way through the system, lower ordering, sharemilking and buying your own farm. Mike and I progressed through the industry together and in 2006, we purchased our 200 acre dairy farm in Eketahuna, milking 180 cows.
When the Horizons One Plan came on the agenda, I was contacted by others that shared similar concerns and we started working together as the Tararua Community Economic Impact Group.
It was a complex issue, and the impacts were far wider than just the farming sector. We spent many hours making deputations, calls and finally seeing change. We’re hoping that at the end, we’ll have a plan that means we can work towards a sustainable environment and viable businesses in our region. This process has taught me some great lessons that I use today; understand the issues, work together and take people with you on the journey. It was also apparent that farmers need to be more involved in policy and decision-making outside the farm gate. During this period, I was asked if I’d consider standing for Council. It took me by surprise as it wasn’t something I’d ever considered.
Rural people have many skills to share in governance, and without each other, we can’t flourish. We’re all interconnected and we all need each other. Tararua is unique in that it is 424,000 hectares of land with seven towns. We have the fourth largest roading network in the country, with a very small rating base. And that small rating base is a challenge that all rural districts have. All of these small communities have their own uniqueness, stories and points of difference. I guess for us, we’ve got that number eight wire mentality that means we work together and help each other. Because our district is surrounded by three regions, what happens in those other districts impacts us. When I’m out of the district, I am still working for our district.
When I was first a Councillor, I was all about economic development, and I had the One Plan portfolio. Because you’re farming, you’ve just got so many more skills, like finance and an understanding of the wastewater and the environment. We tend to under value the skill set we have as farmers. Round the Council table I wouldn’t say I am a specialist in anything, but a farmer is a great generalist. As a Councillor and Mayor, I’ve been to parliament over rural connectivity, earthquake prone buildings and forestry. For districts, it depends what issues come up. We’ve fought for a few! Big issues and big impacts. Whilst it’s not a fragile economy, all of those little things matter.
In 2016, when I experienced the Agri Women’s Development Trust Escalator course, I’d not long become Mayor.
It was a really positive and powerful thing to do in the first year of mayoralty; to take that deep look at who I was, how I lead and how my values impact that leadership.
Since becoming Mayor I don’t get a lot of time out on farm. The main office is in Dannevirke and I go through to Dannevirke most days. But, I do enjoy getting out on farm and going for an evening walk, which keeps me grounded and really peaceful. I’ll do some work, but I’ll always switch off and catch up on the day’s events on the farm business. Being a farmer, I’m an early morning person, so I’m up at 5am every day. I usually will have turned out a couple of hours of solid work before I go to the office. I do my tough stuff early, because you simply don’t know what’s going to come up in a day.
When the need arises, I share little pieces about the farm.
As far as a councillor or a mayoral role goes, most people will say when you’re off the farm, you’re real, you’re a hard worker and, you’re practical. Farmers are resilient and adaptable, and work together on farm and in their communities. These are great characteristics to have. I remember in the 2008 Global Financial Crisis, neighbours bartered and shared to get through. When you live rurally, you’re always involved in playcentre, school, local sports and social events. Because our communities are smaller, they’re more connected and they work together. Since becoming Mayor, one of our neighbours stepped in, because he knows I’m busy, and he helps Mike bring the herd home from the runoff.
“When the 2008 Global Financial Crisis hit, we had only owned the farm for two years. It was a scary time for many farmers, but we tend to keep that stress to ourselves. Often now in my Council role I will talk about it, because farmers tend to blame themselves or feel judged and don’t want others to know. But, in reality, we have all faced periods of financial strain on our businesses whether it be from drought, higher interest rates, change in land value or low returns. There are many factors and we work through them, but a problem shared helps with that burden. It is one of my greatest lessons from sharemilking. We soldiered on ourselves, digging deep and not wanting others to know - but it is the wrong thing to do,” says Tracey.